Ramadan

Members of the La Cañada Flintridge Islamic Congregation greeted each other and community members warmly on Friday evening at the Community Center of La Cañada Flintridge. Since their first meeting in December 2006, the members of the congregation have reached out to the community to share information on their faith and to dispel misconceptions of who they are as Islamic Americans. On Friday they shared the meaning and the ceremony of Ramadan. This year from Sept. 1 to Sept.

On the first night of Ramadan in Southern California last week, the heat was taking its toll. The fans spun overhead in the dimly lit room as the first prayers were melodically recited by an imam who had made the journey from Diamond Bar. His voice and his pronunciation was a thing to behold, they told me. Bottles of cold water were handed out, providing temporary relief. Even the walls, decorated with framed, golden-threaded Arabic phrases, might have been sweating, but the heat's persistence was no match for the faith flooding into the Glendale Islamic Center.

About 700 Muslims gathered Friday morning to celebrate the end of their annual fast and the beginning of a new religious center in Glendale. People wearing everything from three-piece suits to traditional robes and shawls came to the Pacific Community Center gym to offer the Eid Prayer in celebration of the end of Ramadan, a month-long fast. Men and teenage boys sat on one carpet, women and young children on another, as the group repeated the rhythmic lines of the prayer.

Marshall Allen GLENDALE -- On Saturday, the Muslim community in Glendale and around the world, will begin the month-long celebration of Ramadan. It's a time of spiritual purification and community celebration. Ramadan is the month on the Islamic lunar calendar when Muslims abstain from food, drink and other sensual pleasures every day from the break of dawn until sunset. The fast is performed to learn discipline, self restraint and generosity while obeying God's commandments.

On Friday night friends, family and community members joined together at the Roger Barkley Community Center to celebrate Ramadan with the La Cañada Flintridge Islamic Congregation. From Sept. 13 to Oct. 12, Muslims of the Islamic faith recognize Ramadan by fasting from sunrise to sunset. It is a time of retrospect and life renewing for the faithful, a time to look inward to reevaluate how they are helping others. It is also a time to gather with friends and celebrate their faith.

A congressional resolution recognizing the Islamic holy month of Ramadan as important is reportedly being touted by U.S. Muslims as an important sign that they are gaining acceptance in America and becoming part of the fabric of the country. But Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., argued that the resolution is nothing more than an example of political correctness, which he reportedly said has captured the political and media elite in the U.S. What do you think? . The unanimous congressional resolution of Oct. 2 recognizing the month of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal, is another watershed event for the tradition of religious pluralism in our country.

GLENDALE — Sundown on Friday marked the beginning of Ramadan, a time when Muslims worldwide will begin a month of prayer and fasting. The occasion in part celebrates the time when the Qur'an was believed to be revealed from God to the prophet Muhammad and is also the ninth month in the lunar calendar. During the month many Muslims will refrain from eating and drinking during the daylight hours and will partake in extended prayer sessions at their local mosque, said Edina Lekovic, spokesperson for the Islamic Center of Southern California.

When Adam Burpee’s high school football teammates rush to nearby water coolers in the afternoon heat, he watches and waits. On a normal day, in a normal month of his senior season, the 17-year-old would take the opportunity to hydrate, but with the Muslim holy month of fasting underway, he won’t have any food or drink until after sundown — at least two hours after the end of his practices. It’s not easy, he said, especially with August and September temperatures that have often crept up to triple-digit levels.

Josh Kleinbaum Like most Muslims, Arif Shaikh will mark the month of Ramadan with daytime fasts and solemn prayer. But for Shaikh, a representative of Burbank-based Islamic Relief USA, the traditional observances of Ramadan are coupled each year with a heavier work load. "Muslims believe the month of Ramadan to be a month of mercy, a month of compassion," Shaikh said. "People fast from dawn to dusk, but there are people across the world who don't have food or drink for the rest of year.

On the first night of Ramadan in Southern California last week, the heat was taking its toll. The fans spun overhead in the dimly lit room as the first prayers were melodically recited by an imam who had made the journey from Diamond Bar. His voice and his pronunciation was a thing to behold, they told me. Bottles of cold water were handed out, providing temporary relief. Even the walls, decorated with framed, golden-threaded Arabic phrases, might have been sweating, but the heat's persistence was no match for the faith flooding into the Glendale Islamic Center.

About 700 Muslims gathered Friday morning to celebrate the end of their annual fast and the beginning of a new religious center in Glendale. People wearing everything from three-piece suits to traditional robes and shawls came to the Pacific Community Center gym to offer the Eid Prayer in celebration of the end of Ramadan, a month-long fast. Men and teenage boys sat on one carpet, women and young children on another, as the group repeated the rhythmic lines of the prayer.

When Adam Burpee’s high school football teammates rush to nearby water coolers in the afternoon heat, he watches and waits. On a normal day, in a normal month of his senior season, the 17-year-old would take the opportunity to hydrate, but with the Muslim holy month of fasting underway, he won’t have any food or drink until after sundown — at least two hours after the end of his practices. It’s not easy, he said, especially with August and September temperatures that have often crept up to triple-digit levels.

The Muslim holy month of fasting begins today and, for the first time, local followers of the faith will have a nearby location to meet and practice their traditions together in what can otherwise be a lonely and challenging period of self-restraint, community leaders said. Muslims abstain from food, drink and sexual activity during daylight hours for the month of Ramadan, which follows the lunar calendar and will last until Sept. 19 this year. While local Muslims have either gone without attending traditional evening prayer services or have driven to other mosques in the past, this year will be different, said Mahmoud Nouh, spokesman for the Islamic Center of Glendale.

Members of the La Cañada Flintridge Islamic Congregation greeted each other and community members warmly on Friday evening at the Community Center of La Cañada Flintridge. Since their first meeting in December 2006, the members of the congregation have reached out to the community to share information on their faith and to dispel misconceptions of who they are as Islamic Americans. On Friday they shared the meaning and the ceremony of Ramadan. This year from Sept. 1 to Sept.

A congressional resolution recognizing the Islamic holy month of Ramadan as important is reportedly being touted by U.S. Muslims as an important sign that they are gaining acceptance in America and becoming part of the fabric of the country. But Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., argued that the resolution is nothing more than an example of political correctness, which he reportedly said has captured the political and media elite in the U.S. What do you think? The unanimous congressional resolution of Oct. 2 recognizing the month of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal, is another watershed event for the tradition of religious pluralism in our country.

On Friday night friends, family and community members joined together at the Roger Barkley Community Center to celebrate Ramadan with the La Cañada Flintridge Islamic Congregation. From Sept. 13 to Oct. 12, Muslims of the Islamic faith recognize Ramadan by fasting from sunrise to sunset. It is a time of retrospect and life renewing for the faithful, a time to look inward to reevaluate how they are helping others. It is also a time to gather with friends and celebrate their faith.

GLENDALE — Sundown on Friday marked the beginning of Ramadan, a time when Muslims worldwide will begin a month of prayer and fasting. The occasion in part celebrates the time when the Qur'an was believed to be revealed from God to the prophet Muhammad and is also the ninth month in the lunar calendar. During the month many Muslims will refrain from eating and drinking during the daylight hours and will partake in extended prayer sessions at their local mosque, said Edina Lekovic, spokesperson for the Islamic Center of Southern California.

As Jews around the globe end a 48-hour Rosh Hashanah celebration today, ringing in the new year 5766, Muslims worldwide begin a monthlong journey of fasting and prayer for the holy month of Ramadan. Muslims at the Islamic Relief Center in Burbank, and worldwide, are -- practicing self-control and reflection and giving to those less fortunate. "Ramadan is a month of mercy and a month of charity," said Arif Shaikh, spokesman for the center. "It's something where people are extremely charitable, and are really working on themselves to become better people."